Bubblevicious
Bubblevicious is the 1st half of the 9th episode of Season 1, which aired on January 20th, 1999. In this episode, Bubbles turns hardcore. Episode Summary Bubbles is tired of being treated like a baby. When she tries to become tougher, a more "hardcore" side of her is unleashed. However, she goes too far and even turns against her own sisters. Plot Description The City of Townsville is under siege by a large slug when Buttercup flies in solo to neutralize it. As she tears through it, the Professor is coaching her to stop, and it is then realized that what she handled was all part of a training exercise in a simulation chamber proctored by the Professor. After she passes the exercise, Bubbles runs on with how hardcore Buttercup was in handling the scenario, all the way down to when she emerged from being stuck. Despite all this, Professor Utonium tells Bubbles to go next. However, Professor Utonium lowers it down from Level 9 to Level 2 because he thinks it's "too much" for her. In this test, she had to fight a simple robot that was too small and seemingly harmless. In a complaint, Bubbles tells the Professor that she is as tough as Buttercup and Blossom, but the robot zaps her and she fails the test. The Professor then tells her that she's "not ready" for the higher levels yet. This upsets her and she leaves. Then, at bedtime, Blossom tells the Professor to leave the hall light on for Bubbles. Bubbles claims to have faced her fear of the dark, but the Professor just dismisses this as her "acting brave." After Buttercup teases her for "being the scarediest," the Professor says goodnight and leaves, leaving the door open once again. With the unfair treatment and excessive babying she receives over the last few hours being the last straw, Bubbles decides that she will prove her true toughness, even as she sneaks down the lab and takes another test this time at Level 11, the maximum danger level. In her test, Bubbles has to fight a huge army of monsters amidst an apocalyptic scenario. At first, it seems she was going to fail once again. However, tired of being dismissed as "cute," and even taking a few bumps with some blood drawn, Bubbles soon defeats all of the monsters in a fueled rage, becoming more aggressive than she ever was before and even declaring herself "hardcore." The next day during recess, the girls play duck-duck-goose, and Blossom tags Bubbles and teases her for being slow, but Bubbles catches her and slams her into the ground. Through her monologue, as she declares victory, Blossom tries to calm Bubbles down by telling her that it was only a game, and then the hotline rings. The Mayor is stuck in huge traffic by Talking Dog, and Bubbles addresses the situation alone and brutally beats him. Her sisters later appear, both surprised and appalled by her new behavior as they try to calm her down. Bubbles, on the other hand, does not listen, renouncing the so-called "Powerpuff Way" and claiming that she can handle Townsville herself. With her declarations made clear, she leaves them, flying solo. Soon, Bubbles goes into a destructive rage in Townsville, senselessly beating up people for crimes as minor as littering, stepping on protected grasses, and being parked in the wrong areas. Later, despite her hardcore, rage-fueled vigilante behavior, Mojo Jojo kidnaps her as Blossom and Buttercup try to secure her. Meanwhile, Mojo makes Bubbles part of his plan: to get Bubbles to cry for her sisters and trap and destroy them all. To that end, Mojo straps her in front of a laser and fires at her, come to find that her will is so strong that it initially has no effect. Then, he tries Level 11. At first, it seems that it would finally work to break her spirit, but Bubbles breaks free and brutally beats up Mojo. With Mojo down, Blossom and Buttercup come to her rescue upon picking up her screams but are amazed to see that Bubbles defeated Mojo all by herself and resisted a laser at a level as high as Level 11. They realize that they have underestimated her and finally calls her "hardcore." After having received her long-overdue share of respect, Bubbles apologizes and returns to her cheery self again. However, Mojo regains consciousness and zaps Bubbles and the girls and Bubbles fights back by repeatedly beating up Mojo as the episode ends. Home Videos Released * Bubblevicious (VHS) Trivia *This episode, along with "The Bare Facts", was nominated for "Outstanding Achievement in Animation" in Primetime Emmys. *Some of the music is from Meat Fuzzy Lumpkins, the pilot episode of the Powerpuff Girls. *This is the first episode to star Bubbles as the main character. *This is also the first episode where Bubbles has more screen time than Blossom and Buttercup. *This is also the first time where Bubbles stands up to Blossom and Buttercup. *This is also one of Bubbles' most villainous roles because she beats up everyone, including Mojo Jojo, "her way". *Blossom is the only Powerpuff Girl in this episode to not fight any monster or even be shown fighting in the training room. **This is probably because she had already finished training prior to the events of this episode. *It is because of the beatings by Bubbles in this episode that Mojo Jojo is the most afraid of Bubbles out of the Powerpuff Girls in the Cartoon Network Fusionfall game. *It is unknown why Mojo would zap the girls after getting beaten up brutally by Bubbles, as that would be pointless, since the girls are immune to lasers, thus making Mojo even more stupid as he gets beaten up more at the end. *This episode has the concept of "Taking it up to 11". This is a reference to Spinal Tap. *The episode title is similar to "Bubblevision". *This is the only time that Bubbles goes "hardcore." A similar instance happened in the reboot episode "Strong-Armed", where Bubbles got too used to her new arm cast and even went as far as to cause destruction with it. *This is Tara Strong's favorite episode on record. She says that it's because she likes it when Bubbles goes "hardcore". *This is the episode where Bubbles overcomes her fear of the dark. *One of the monsters from the training room is seen in the opening, along with many other villains. *Along with "The Bare Facts", this episode shows blood. *This is the only episode in which the Professor's fight simulation chamber appears. *The moral of this episode is to be yourself, even if someone makes fun of you. *The 80's Movie is referenced in this episode when Bubbles says: "Mercy is for the weak!". Production Notes *Although this episode premiered in 1999, it was produced in 1998 according to the credits. Quotes :has taken down Blossom in a game of "Duck, Duck, Goose" :Bubbles: Ha! I got you! You're out! Done! Finished! You were beaten down, sister, by CUTE! LITTLE! BUBBLES! :Blossom: Sheesh, relax. It's just a game. :Talking Dog: Bubbles, please, have mercy! :Bubbles: Mercy is for the weak! :is zapping Bubbles with his laser in his latest plan to destroy the girls and take over the world :Bubbles: I'm not... gonna cry, you... dumb... doo-doo brain! :Mojo: "Doo-doo brain?!?" That's it! I've had it with your sassy mouth! I didn't want to do this! Well, actually I did''.'' :raises the laser level to 11 Video MERCY IS FOR THE WEAK! Category:Episodes Category:Season 1 Category:Episodes focusing on Mojo Jojo Category:Episodes focusing on Bubbles Category:Episodes storyboarded by Michael Stern Category:Episodes directed by Genndy Tartakovsky Category:Craig McCracken's 10 favourite episodes Category:Episodes directed by Craig McCracken Category:Episodes where Pokey Oaks is present Category:Emmy Nominated Episodes Category:1999 episodes Category:Dark Episodes Category:Episodes with teasing Category:Episodes that feature monsters